Sylvester Idowu in Warri
#A total of 32 graduands of the Federal University of Petroleum Resources (FUPRE), Effurun, Delta State became instant millionaires last weekend during the second convocation of the institution.
A former member of the House of Representatives, Hon Ned Nwoko presented each of the first class graduands a donation of one million naira in appreciation of the efforts they put into their education.
The politician, who bagged an honorary degree of FUPRE, in response on behalf of the three honorary awardees, stunned the gathering when he called out the first class graduates and announced the donation.
He also announced a yearly donation for the future first class graduates of the institution, saying that the gesture is to stimulate the reading culture amongthe students of FUPRE.
Some of the beneficiaries and recipients of Vice-Chancellor’s Prize included Abel Okojunu of the Department of Mathematics with a CGPA 4.95; Jacinta Okpanum of Chemical Engineering with 4.69 CGPA; Israel Osagbe Momoh of Petroleum Engineering with CGPA of 4.76 and Destiny Route of the Department of Physics with 4.74 CGPA.
The visitor to the university, President Muhammadu Buhari, rejoiced with and congratulated all the graduands and their guardians for the successful completion of their courses and for being worthy to be enlisted in the honours roll.
He thanked the people of Niger Delta for their support to the federal government, under his leadership, through the sustenance of peace in the region. This he said has encouraged smooth operation of industries in the oil and gas sector.
The Vice-Chancellor of FUPRE, Professor Akii Ibhadode, said the vision of his management is to take the university to the top 500 universities in world ranking.
Ibhadode, who was represented by the Deputy Vice- Chancellor, Administration, Professor Prekeyi Tawari-Fufeyin said: “This dream was anchored on the untapped potential of the university; being in the rich Niger Delta belt of the country and the place of Nigeria as a major oil producing country.
“The recent and increasing oil finds in Sub-Saharan Africa; from Ghana to Niger to Equatorial Guinea, East Africa etc, suggests huge market for skilled and managerial manpower which the Federal University of Petroleum Resources, Effurun is ready to provide,” he said.
